NICS Checks Dip In February

The February 2023 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 1.34 million represented a decline of 0.6 percent compared to the February 2022 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1.35 million.

For comparison, the unadjusted February 2023 FBI NICS figure of 2,502,385 reflected a 0.5 percent decrease from the unadjusted FBI NICS figure of 2,514,818 in February 2022.

NSSF noted that February 2023 was the 43rd consecutive month that had exceeded one million adjusted background checks in a single month.

In January, firearm background checks, on an adjusted basis, grew 6.5 percent. In 2022, NSSF’s adjusted NICS checks declined 11 percent in 2022 to 16.43 million from 18.5 million in 2021 and were down 22 percent from 2020’s all-time high.